INDIANAPOLIS — Today, Mayor Joe Hogsett, along with IMPD Chief Chris Bailey, IEMS Chief Dan O'Donnell, and IFD Chief Ernest Malone, announced the launch of the Unified Mental Health Response Initiative, aimed at enhancing support for the Indianapolis community and first responders during mental health crises.
What is the Initiative?
The Unified Mental Health Response Initiative will integrate the efforts of IMPD, IFD, and IEMS across all IMPD districts.
"This unified response represents our city's efforts to address mental health issues proactively and through collaboration," Chief Bailey said. "We know that a law enforcement response isn't always necessary or appropriate for these runs."
How It Works:
- Call Dispatch: The Metropolitan Emergency Services Agency (MESA) handles service calls. Callers will speak with dispatchers who will gather essential information regarding the situation, including any known prior diagnoses, current medications, and potential weapons.
- Information Sharing: This information will be relayed to the respective agencies — IMPD, IFD, and IEMS.
- Response Protocols:
- If information is limited or scene safety is uncertain, all three agencies will respond, with IMPD leading the assessment of safety.
- In the presence of an active safety threat, IMPD will take the lead in securing the scene, while IEMS and IFD will be staged nearby.
- If there is no apparent safety threat, all agencies will respond, with IEMS and/or IFD leading the effort and IMPD on standby.
The unified response will be activated in cases where Mobile Crisis Assistance Teams (MCAT) or Clinician-Led Community Response Teams (CLCR) are unavailable.
"The new initiative is great, because in the past, if we didn't have CLCR available or MCAT available, the first response would be to send law enforcement," Tom Sellas, Chief of MESA, said.
MCAT operates Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and again from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., while CLCR is available 24/7 for the downtown, east, and north districts.
All agencies have begun joint training, and the unified response initiative is expected to launch later this month.
"We'll arrive on the scene, we'll huddle, we'll make sure it's safe, and then we'll work together to deploy the best strategy so we have the most positive outcome possible," IFD Chief Ernest Malone said.
